--- title: "Where and how to sleep legally in the Czech countryside" description: "Find out how and where you can legally sleep out in the Czech countryside, what the rules are and tips for safe overnights outdoors following Leave No Trace principles." canonical_url: "https://gramino.com/blog/how-to-sleep-legally-in-czech-nature" last_updated: "2024-07-30" --- # Where and how to sleep legally in the Czech countryside Authors: Petra Kovalčíková Date: 2024-07-30 Find out how and where you can legally sleep out in the Czech countryside, what the rules are and tips for safe overnights outdoors following Leave No Trace principles. Hiking in the mountains, tramping, and rough camping have a long tradition here in Czechia, and interest in them has been picking up again recently. Whether that's down to the movement restrictions during the covid pandemic or the growing popularity of the long-distance Stezka Českem trail that traces the country's border, more and more people are heading out to find some peace in Czechia's beautiful countryside. And we don't blame them! As more people head outdoors, the expectations on how we treat nature also grow, so that it stays just as beautiful for future generations. We already wrote about how to behave properly in nature in the article “[Vanish without a trace: leave no trace](/blog/leave-no-trace)”. This time we're taking a look at **how Czech law restricts our presence in nature for the sake of conservation** – in other words, where we're allowed to move around freely, whether we can sleep outdoors at all, where we can build a fire and roast sausages, how we should behave to avoid a fine, or what safety precautions we should follow so a hunter in a tree stand doesn't mistake us for game. ## **Camping vs. overnighting** When it comes to sleeping outdoors, [**the Act on Nature and Landscape Protection**](https://www.zakonyprolidi.cz/cs/1992-114) works with two terms that it doesn't define entirely clearly or unambiguously. These terms are “**camping**” and “**overnighting**”. Over years of practice, though, their definitions have settled into the following: ## **Camping** Camping is considered a set of activities connected with a stay (by an individual or group of people) in one place in nature that includes the possibility of spending the night. It mainly means sleeping outdoors in some kind of shelter – above all a tent ⛺️. The existence of a shelter, however, isn't a strict requirement for meeting the definition of camping. Camping includes other accompanying activities, such as preparing a sleeping spot, preparing food, washing dishes, generating human or other waste, and so on. In some cases, people staying in one place during the day can also be considered to be camping if their activities as a whole meet the definition of camping (e.g. building a shelter, preparing food, littering the surroundings), even if they don't spend the night there. (source: [Nature and Landscape Protection Agency of the Czech Republic](https://nature.cz/chci-taborit-ve-zvlaste-chranenem-uzemi)) *“Camping is considered to be spending the night using a shelter (mainly a tent) along with other accompanying activities such as* *relieving oneself*, *preparing food, etc*.*”* ## **Overnighting** Overnighting means a one-off night spent outdoors without any signs of a longer stay. In practice, that means that in the evening after dark you lay a sleeping pad on the ground, don't pitch a tent, tarp, or any other shelter above you, don't hang a hammock, don't light a fire, and leave no trash behind. This is also commonly called sleeping under the stars, bivouacking, or, following the example of American long-distance trails – [cowboy camping](/blog/ultralight-and-thru-hiking-glossary). *Overnighting means spending the night outdoors without using a shelter, without lighting a fire, and without leaving any trace of your stay.”* Whether you're pitching a tent, a tarp, or bivouacking under the open sky somewhere, you should always keep a few key rules in mind: - Don't leave any trash or food scraps behind. - Don't lay out your sleeping spot in vegetation you could damage by doing so. - Don't camp in the immediate vicinity of water. - Only lay out your sleeping spot once it gets dark, and get up at first light. - Don't make noise – no shouting, no music, etc. - Instead of a toilet, dig a hole deep enough and thoroughly bury everything afterward. ## Legally protected areas The law defines two types of protected areas: **large-scale specially protected areas** and **small-scale specially protected areas**. ##### **Large-scale specially protected areas**: - national parks – NP - protected landscape areas – CHKO ##### **Small-scale specially protected areas**: - national nature reserves – NPR - national natural monuments – NPP - nature reserves – PR - natural monuments – PP The easiest way to find out what kind of area you're standing in is on [mapy.cz](http://mapy.cz/), where specially protected areas are marked. You'll find the most up-to-date information, including detailed maps and legal documents, in [this application](https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/b57b9801e47e47fbac9d059ef9ad47a4/?draft=true&org=aopkcr), maintained by the **Nature and Landscape Protection Agency of the Czech Republic** ([www.nature.cz](http://www.nature.cz/)). The geographic boundaries of individual areas are defined by what are known as **establishing regulations**. These specify exactly what's being protected in a given place, and they can prohibit other activities in that area (e.g. walking off paved paths to protect the habitats of rare plants, nesting birds, or the presence of large carnivores). There aren't many places with these kinds of additional bans and restrictions, though, and they generally don't limit ordinary hikers in any way. Problems can arise when organizing larger events and races that organizers want to route through these areas. In that case, an exemption needs to be requested from the administration of the relevant protected area. National parks and some national nature reserves or monuments may also have their own **visitor rules**, which clearly define the rights and duties of visitors to the given area. If you're heading into these areas and planning to sleep there or explore the landscape more closely, it's worth reading this document and following it if you don't want to run into conflict with local rangers. Now let's take a look together at the individual categories of protected areas and the restrictions on movement and overnight stays within them. ## Large-scale specially protected areas ### National parks (NP) - **Goal:** protection of large areas of preserved nature and natural processes - **Areas:** 4 (Krkonoše NP, Šumava NP, Podyjí NP, and Bohemian Switzerland NP) - **Area in Czechia:** 119,019 ha (1.5% of Czechia) - **Marking in the field:** signs with the large Czech state emblem; striped boundary markings on posts or boundary trees (zone I only) - **Movement:** on marked trails only - **Sleeping:** camping prohibited outside designated spots (e.g. the emergency campsite in Šumava NP), overnighting banned in zone I, theoretically possible directly on the trail in other zones (not recommended) - **Information:** visitor rules for individual national parks ### Protected landscape areas (CHKO) - **Goal:** protection of a landscape that's partly natural and partly cultural in character - **Areas:** 26 (e.g. Beskydy, Lužické hory, Třeboňsko, Český ráj, Brdy, and others) - **Area of Czechia:** 1,138,174 ha (14.4% of Czechia) - **Marking in the field:** signs with the large Czech state emblem - **Movement:** free (i.e. you can, for example, use paved unmarked paths or go mushroom picking in the forest) - **Sleeping:** camping prohibited outside designated spots, overnighting permitted - **Information:** establishing regulations; if the area overlaps with another protected area (e.g. a national nature reserve), stricter restrictions may apply; you can find plenty of useful and interesting information [here.](https://www.nature.cz/poznavam-prirodu) ## Small-scale specially protected areas ### National nature reserves (NPR) - **Goal:** protection of ecosystems in a smaller area of national or international significance - **Areas:** 110 (e.g. Adršpach-Teplice Rocks, Králický Sněžník, Milešovka, Mionší, Radhošť, Rejvíz, and others) - **Area of Czechia:** 30,441 ha (0.4% of Czechia) - **Marking in the field:** signs with the large Czech state emblem; striped boundary markings on posts or boundary trees - **Movement:** no entry off marked paths, generally also a ban on collecting plants including forest fruit - **Sleeping:** both camping and overnighting prohibited outside designated spots - **Information:** establishing regulations and visitor rules ### Nature reserves (PR) - **Goal:** protection of ecosystems in a smaller area of regional significance - **Areas:** 820 (in the Beskydy, for example, Mionší NPR, Malý Polom NPR, Lysá hora PR, Travný PR, and others) - **Area of Czechia:** 43,677 ha (0.6% of Czechia) - **Marking in the field:** signs with the small Czech state emblem; striped boundary markings on posts or boundary trees - **Movement:** free (i.e. you can, for example, use paved unmarked paths or go mushroom picking in the forest) - **Sleeping:** camping prohibited outside designated spots, overnighting permitted - **Information:** establishing regulations and visitor rules; movement and overnight stays may be further restricted by specific decrees or visitor rules ### National natural monuments (NPP) - **Goal:** protection of smaller sites of species or inanimate-nature phenomena of national or international significance - **Areas:** 126 (e.g. Babiččino údolí, Na Pomezí Cave, Panská skála, Pravčická brána, Peklo, Skalická Morávka, and others) - **Area of Czechia:** 8,274 ha (0.1% of Czechia) - **Marking in the field:** signs with the large Czech state emblem; striped boundary markings on posts or boundary trees - **Movement:** free (i.e. you can, for example, use paved unmarked paths or go mushroom picking in the forest) - **Sleeping:** camping prohibited outside designated spots, overnighting permitted - **Information:** establishing regulations and visitor rules; movement and overnight stays may be further restricted by specific decrees or visitor rules ### Natural monuments (PP) - **Goal:** protection of smaller sites of species or inanimate-nature phenomena of regional significance - **Areas:** 1,597 (in the Beskydy, for example, Kněhyňská jeskyně PP, Hukvaldy PP, Vodopády Satiny PP, and others) - **Area of Czechia:** 33,902 ha (0.4% of Czechia) - **Marking in the field:** signs with the small Czech state emblem; striped boundary markings on posts or boundary trees - **Movement:** free (i.e. you can, for example, use paved unmarked paths or go mushroom picking in the forest) - **Sleeping:** camping prohibited outside designated spots, overnighting permitted - **Information:** establishing regulations and visitor rules; movement and overnight stays may be further restricted by specific decrees or visitor rules ## Unprotected areas So what about the rest of Czechia that, by law, doesn't fall under specially protected areas? We mainly mean forests, fields, meadows, pastures… Movement restrictions only apply to **privately fenced land** (houses with gardens, pastures, etc.) and land where something is currently **being grown** and where moving through it could damage the crop (vineyards, orchards, fields, meadows, etc.). In forests outside protected areas, then, you can **move around without restriction**. You can't light a fire in them, though – for that you need to move at least **50 meters from the edge of the forest**. Always be careful when lighting a fire, especially in dry conditions. From the adjacent forest, you can only gather **dry brushwood fallen on the ground up to 7 cm in diameter** for the fire. Using an [alcohol stove](/p/emo-outdoor-alcohol-stove) or a [wood-burning stove](/p/toaks-titanium-wood-burning-stove-small) may also be considered lighting a fire, since they don't have a regulatable flame. As for sleeping outdoors, it's theoretically permitted. However, some land may be private, and it's always better to **contact the owner and ask beforehand**. That way you'll avoid an unpleasant wake-up in the middle of the night when the owner shows up with an angry rottweiler to check on you and ask you to leave the property. You can find out who the owner is either from local residents or by checking the [cadastre of real estate](https://nahlizenidokn.cuzk.cz/). In reality, there may also be other **generally binding decrees** banning camping or lighting fires in the territory of certain municipalities and towns. Additional restrictions may also apply under the Forest Act in **current situations caused by natural disasters**, where, for example, there's a risk of falling trees or an increased fire risk. Finding this information out in advance when planning a trip can often be a lengthy, almost detective-like task, since it may only be posted, for example, on a municipality's official notice board. - [Sea To Summit Wilderness Wash 100 ml](/p/sea-to-summit-wilderness-wash-100-ml.md) - [Kula Cloth](/p/kula-cloth-pee-cloth.md) - [Gramino SagiFlow](/p/gramino-sagiflow-ultralight-bidet.md) - [Sea To Summit Pocket Shower](/p/sea-to-summit-pocket-shower.md) - [Liteway Wash Bag](/p/liteway-wash-bag.md) - [Sea To Summit Hydraulic Packing Cube](/p/sea-to-summit-hydraulic-packing-cube.md) - [CNOC Vesica 1 L 28 mm](/p/cnoc-vesica-1-l-28-mm.md) - [Platypus Softbottle 1.0 L Platy Logo Closure Cap](/p/platypus-softbottle-1-l-platy-logo-closure-cap.md) - [Sawyer Mini SP128 Orange](/p/sawyer-mini-sp128-orange.md) - [MSR PocketRocket 2](/p/msr-pocketrocket-2.md) - [TOAKS LIGHT Titanium 650 ml Pot](/p/toaks-light-pot-650-ml.md) ## Where else can you sleep? If you want to be sure you're not breaking any laws, decrees, or regulations, the simplest option is to sleep at official places designated for it. You can either sleep under a roof in **guesthouses**, **mountain huts and refuges**, or in a tent at **official campsites**. In summer you can avoid overcrowded, noisy campsites by staying somewhere [off the beaten track](https://www.bezkempu.cz/). In the Šumava mountains there are official [**emergency campsites**](https://www.npsumava.cz/navstivte-sumavu/nouzova-nocoviste/), which let you do a multi-day trek across the entire national park. These campsites have limited capacity, though, and work on a first-come, first-served basis. A number of places also have **emergency shelters** built, which are used to wait out the night or a spell of bad weather. There are several, for example, in [Krkonoše NP](https://utulnautulna.cekuj.net/aktualni-stav-utulen/). Lesy ČR (the Czech state forest authority) is now building a network of emergency shelters along the route of [Stezka Českem](/blog/stezka-ceskem-martin-ubl). In 2024 they aim to build 20 shelters, and the first ones are already up (you can find more information as it comes in the [press releases](https://lesycr.cz/tiskove-zpravy/) of Lesy ČR). If you head out on a weekend trek planning to sleep under the stars, but sudden bad weather catches you off guard, you can spend the night in a **hikers' shelter**, of which there are plenty around Czechia. You can even plan this kind of overnight stay in advance, because most shelters are marked on [mapy.cz](http://mapy.cz/), and for many of them you'll also find photos, so you can check beforehand whether they have a roof, how big they are, and so on. - [Liteway Biggie Tarp](/p/liteway-biggie-tarp.md) - [Sea To Summit Ultra-Sil 15D Nano Tarp Poncho](/p/sea-to-summit-ultra-sil15d-nano-tarp-poncho.md) - [Sea To Summit 70D Nylon Tarp Poncho](/p/sea-to-summit-70d-nylon-tarp-poncho.md) - [Liteway Poncho Pyraomm](/p/liteway-poncho-pyraomm.md) - [Warmpeace Shelter Tarp](/p/warmpeace-shelter-tarp.md) - [Liteway Pyraomm Duo Tarp](/p/liteway-pyraomm-duo-tarp.md) - [DD Hammocks SuperLight Tarp XL](/p/dd-hammocks-superlight-tarp-xl.md) - [Sea To Summit Escapist 15D Tarp Large](/p/sea-to-summit-escapist-15d-tarp-large.md) - [DD Hammocks SuperLight Tarp S](/p/dd-hammocks-superlight-tarp-s.md) ## Who's responsible for keeping nature clean? Keeping our nature clean is **mainly up to us**. Whether we're heading out on [Stezka Českem](https://www.stezkaceskem.cz/), a weekend trek, or even just a day trip into nature, we should always follow common sense and the **principles of** [**Leave No Trace**](/blog/leave-no-trace). Put simply, that means not leaving any trash behind, sticking mainly to existing trails and minimizing movement off them, not picking or damaging any plants, not disturbing animals, and so on. Officially, though, keeping order is the responsibility of nature rangers (CHKO, NP), the police, forest rangers, game wardens, fishery wardens, the environmental department, the Czech Environmental Inspectorate, and others. There are several specific administrative and oversight bodies, and it always depends on the given area and who holds authority there as an official. ## What to do if someone “catches” you? Whether or not you've broken the law, if nature rangers or another official or the landowner catches you sleeping somewhere, the basic rule is to always **behave politely**. If you behave inappropriately, a fine is almost guaranteed. The Minor Offenses Act takes into account the person's behavior and how the offense was committed. Very often, though, it all ends with a conversation – **communication is simply key**. The ranger will likely be happy to chat with you about why the area is protected, what grows there, and what animals live there, and you'll learn plenty of **interesting information**. ## How to be (un)seen You might be thinking now that when sleeping wild in nature, it's best to hide deep in the forest and not be seen at all. That's probably the easiest way to avoid forest rangers, as well as any onlookers, locals, or other hikers. But plenty of economic activity happens in our countryside, whether that's forestry work, hunting grounds, or harvests. **For your own safety, then, it's better to be seen**, which means having, for example, **reflective elements** and walking after dark with a **headlamp**. If a hunter mistakes you for a wild boar at dawn, or a combine harvester runs over you sleeping in a meadow, it'll already be too late. ## **Život na treku podcast** We talked about legal and safe outdoor sleeping with a field worker from Hnutí Duha's carnivore program, **Jirka Labuda**, in [episode 18 of the Život na treku podcast](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJLwlOA2wy0). In the second half of the podcast, you'll also learn plenty of information and interesting facts about the large carnivores that live in our country. Why are bears, lynxes, and wolves protected? And what should you do if you meet one? Listen to the podcast and find out! 😉 [Video](https://youtu.be/yJLwlOA2wy0?si=iMQVaQ2FJn-vq_xj) This post is also available as [HTML](/blog/how-to-sleep-legally-in-czech-nature). ## Sitemap See the full [sitemap](/sitemap.md) for all pages.